King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Japanese symbol for “asking”

Romaji: choushu
hearing (of a statement, opinion, explanation, etc.); asking; questioning (e.g. a suspect); enquiry

In Japanese, asking is , read (choushu).

Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.

Meanings

  1. n, vs, vt hearing (of a statement, opinion, explanation, etc.); asking; questioning (e.g. a suspect); enquiry
  2. n, vs, vt listening (e.g. to the radio)

Kanji and stroke order

listen, headstrong, naughty
on: チョウ、テイ
kun: き.く、ゆる.す
17 strokes · JLPT 1
take, fetch, take up
on: シュ
kun: と.る、と.り、と.り-、とり
8 strokes · JLPT 2

Other Japanese words for “asking”

WordReadingMeaning
たずね tazunequestion; inquiry; asking
おたずね otazuneinquiry; enquiry; question
むしん mushinpestering (someone for money, etc.); asking; begging

Related words

Words that share a kanji.

WordReadingMeaning
しちょう shichoulooking and listening; (television) viewing; watching
ちょうしゅう choushuuaudience; attendance; hearers
ちょうかく choukaku(sense of) hearing; auditory perception
ぼうちょう bouchoulistening (to a lecture, hearing, parliament session, etc.); attending (without participating); sitting in (e.g. on a meeting)
とうちょう touchouinterception (email); wiretap; bug
とりひき torihikitransactions; dealings; business
かいとり kaitoripurchase; buying; buying out
しゅとく shutokuobtaining (a qualification, right, object, etc.); acquisition (of land, property, etc.); gaining possession (of)

Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.

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